The Rescue Mission
by Lorna2304
Summary: The dwarves are captured by the Wood-elves of Mirkwood, but Bilbo is hiding out in the palace trying to form a plan to rescue everyone. Bilbo/Bofur SLASH
1. Chapter 1

The Rescue Mission

Bilbo Baggins staggered through the tight knit trees of Mirkwood, struggling to stay on his feet as the twisted roots of ancient trees pushed through the ground and conspired to trip him up. He, along with the thirteen dwarves he was travelling with, was starving, tired and close to collapsing. It had been many days since they had begun desperately chasing the lights of the Wood-elves through the forest in the hope that they would spare a drop of water or a morsel of food for them.

Walking unsteadily next to Bilbo was Bofur, the dwarf Bilbo had seemed to connect with most so far. There was something about the infectious smile and friendly demeanour of the dwarf that always drew Bilbo in, and it never failed to brighten his spirits a bit when he sought the company of Bofur. He always seemed to know exactly what to say or do to cheer Bilbo up, even if it was only to give him one of his trademark smiles. Cheer was not coming very naturally at the moment however, even to Bofur.

As the Company continued their slow and desperate struggle through the forest, they were suddenly surrounded by bright lights and the tall, unmistakeable figures of the Wood-elves they had been chasing. All of the elves had their bows and spears pointed threateningly at the dwarves, and they called for them to stop where they were. The Company didn't even put up a fight, weak and starving as they were. They merely collapsed to the ground and waited for the Wood-elves to make the decision of what to do with them.

With all of the dwarves and elves preoccupied with each other, Bilbo quietly slipped the ring onto his finger and waited in the background, watching as the elves lined up the dwarves and counted them. He silently watched as Bofur looked around, panicked, as if looking for someone. With a strange sort of flutter in his stomach, Bilbo realised that Bofur was looking for him. He felt touched that Bofur seemed so concerned for his well-being, and vowed that he would follow these elves and find some way to release their prisoners.

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Breathing raggedly, Bilbo waited in the dark shadows of a hallway. He had followed the Wood-elves and the prisoners all the way to the underground kingdom, and he was currently trying to navigate his way through the labyrinthine tunnels and passages to locate the whereabouts of the prisoners' cells. Following his instinctual sense of direction, he hurried down a passageway that looked almost exactly the same as every other he had walked through.

He turned at the end of here into yet another tunnel, but this one seemed darker and more foreboding than any others he had seen yet. And there were several doors down each side, all separated by enough space to stop anyone inside them talking to each other. With renewed hope, Bilbo hurried to the nearest door and peered through the small barred window. Relief surged through him as he saw Kili sitting alone on the floor of the cell, a calculating look on his face. Bilbo guessed that he was racking his brains for a means of escape.

After a moment's hesitation, Bilbo took off the ring and became visible again.

"Kili!" He whispered softly, and the dwarf looked up immediately. A look of shock was on his face, and he scrambled to his feet at once.

"Baggins! How on earth did you manage to get in here without getting caught?" Kili sounded both surprised and awed, as if his respect for the hobbit had just grown an awful lot.

"Never mind about that! The important thing is to work out how to get you all out of here. I'm going to find all of the other dwarves and let them know I'm here, and then I need to work out some way of breaking you out."

Without another word, Bilbo slipped the ring back onto his finger and sneaked a little further down the tunnel, ignoring Kili's look of shock when he disappeared right in front of his nose. The next cell Bilbo looked into contained a frustrated Fili, who was pacing up and down. Bilbo noted that he looked stronger than any of them had been before they were captured, and thinking back realised that Kili had looked better too. At least it appeared the elves were feeding their prisoners. Bilbo made himself visible again and called to Fili.

"Fili! Over here!"

"Bilbo!" Fili cried softly, looking just as surprised as his brother had been. "What the...how did you get here?"

Bilbo repeated what he had said to Kili, also adding reassurance that Fili's brother was safe and well in the cell next door. This seemed to appease Fili a bit, he stopped pacing and dropped onto the floor to rest. With a last reassuring smile Bilbo hurried off down the tunnel, not bothering to make himself invisible this time. He repeated his words of comfort to Balin, Dwalin, Ori, Nori, and Dori, and was starting to become agitated. It was great to see his fellow comrades safe and well, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't just a little bit biased towards finding Bofur.

Finally, after what felt an age, Bilbo peered into the next cell and with a leap of his stomach he saw the familiar face of Bofur looking back at him. Bofur's face immediately split into a wide grin, and he walked up to the door to see Bilbo closely. After the panic of being separated from Bofur and the rest of the dwarves, Bilbo's affection for him seemed to have grown even more. He had a shrewd idea what the butterflies in his stomach meant, and he felt himself go a little red in the face as he pondered this idea. He was torn out of his reverie by Bofur's gentle voice whispering to him.

"Bilbo, I thought we'd lost you!" The relief was clear in his voice, and he reached his hand through the bars on the door to gently touch Bilbo's face, as if checking he was real. Bilbo immediately blushed even darker, but all the same he smiled broadly.

"You should know me better than that, Bofur, I'd be a poor burglar if I let myself get caught!" Bilbo teased, enjoying watching Bofur smile at him and listening to his deep laugh resonating. He managed to light up even this dank underground tunnel with his laughter and his cheerful disposition. Bilbo sighed softly, enjoying just looking into Bofur's eyes in a comfortable silence. He pondered his feelings for the dwarf, and what chances there were of Bofur returning them. Sure, Bofur had seemed worried about him when the elves caught them, and he was very happy to see that Bilbo was safe...but did that just mean Bofur valued him as a friend? Bilbo sighed. This whole romance thing was a lot more complicated than he had imagined when he was safely at home in the Shire. Who would have thought that he could have fallen for a rough, masculine dwarf in comparison to the small, soft little hobbit women at home? When Bilbo compared the two there was no doubt in his mind who he was attracted to though. He blushed yet again as his thoughts strayed to areas that were most definitely not becoming of a Baggins.

"Something wrong, Bilbo?" Bofur asked concernedly as he studied Bilbo's face.

"No, no, just...just thinking," Bilbo stammered, "I just want you to get out of here as soon as possible. I need to go and find the others, and let them know that I'm working on something!"

"Aye, you do that, Bilbo." Bofur smiled at him again, although now there seemed to be a bit of disappointment in his face. Bilbo nodded and hurried off, thinking hard about everything he had learned so far about the palace. Try as he might, he just couldn't come up with a plan yet, but his small reunion with Bofur had made him all the more determined to break those dwarves out of prison, no matter what it took. He felt strongly about all of the dwarves, and despite his feelings for Bofur there was definitely an element of trust and companionship with everyone else in the Company that was making him determined to free them too. With this fierce feeling in his mind, Bilbo headed towards his other companions with his head held high, resolute in the knowledge that his unwavering luck had got him this far and it would get him out of this situation too if it was the last thing he did.


	2. Chapter 2

Bilbo was frustrated. It had been almost a week since his friends had become imprisoned in the kingdom of the Wood-elves, and he still didn't seem to be any closer to finding a way to help them escape. Guard elves patrolled the passages every 15 minutes, and that was nowhere near enough time to free all thirteen of the prisoners. Not to mention the fact that the guard elves were heavily armed, and the dwarves had been stripped of all their weapons. Bilbo spent most of his time trying to follow the guards and eavesdrop in the vain hope of hearing a piece of useful information. However, the rest of the time he spent talking to his fellow companions and trying to keep them in good spirits while he formulated a plot.

The upside of this situation was that Bilbo was given frequent opportunities to speak to Bofur. He was becoming quite enamoured with the cheerful dwarf, and he couldn't help himself blushing and stuttering like a fool whenever he spoke to him. Bilbo felt that Bofur probably thought him quite an idiot by now, but that couldn't be helped. He discussed anything and everything with Bofur; old stories of the glory days in Erebor, tales of his own early life in the Shire, and anything else they could think about.

Today, the sixth day since they had become trapped in the elven kingdom, Bilbo was standing outside Bofur's cell as usual having a whispered conversation. Suddenly, he heard footsteps in the distance and slipped on the ring at once. Bofur wasn't at all surprised at this; Bilbo having told him about the ring only a couple of days after the imprisonment. Expecting the footsteps to pass by, Bilbo was surprised when they halted outside Bofur's cell. It became immediately apparent that the elves were making rounds with dinner, and they instructed Bofur to stand against the back of his cell with his hands visible while they opened the door and carefully placed the food on the floor. Bilbo saw an opportunity and without thinking twice, slipped through the small gap in the door just before the guard elf slammed it closed and locked it again.

Bilbo stood in the cell for a moment, shocked at what he had done on the spur of the moment. He wouldn't be able to leave the cell again until Bofur was next brought a meal, but he found he really didn't mind, overall. With a sly grin on his face, Bilbo slipped the ring off his finger and enjoyed the look of happy shock on Bofur's face.

"Bilbo, what do you think you're doing in here?" Bofur teased with a grin on his face.

"Oh, you know, just thought I'd drop by." Bilbo walked closer to Bofur shyly, feeling nervous and starting to wonder why on earth he had done this. Yes, he wanted to spend as much time as possible with his favourite dwarf but there was no way he could hide his interest in Bofur now. He was bound to guess exactly why Bilbo had been spending so much time talking to him alone, and why he had taken this risky opportunity to be even closer to him.

"Well, my little hobbit, I think we need to have a bit of a chat," Bofur smiled kindly. Bilbo immediately turned bright red and started panicking.

"What do you mean? What about?" He said a bit loudly, before suddenly remembering where he was.

"Oh, you know...important issues that need to be brought up..." Bofur was walking slowly towards Bilbo with an almost predatory smile on his face, and it was affecting Bilbo much more than he would have been willing to admit. He turned if possible an even darker shade of red, and felt his heart rate dramatically rising. Bofur edged even closer, looking Bilbo directly in the eyes with a gentle smile on his face and a fire blazing in his eyes. For once Bilbo had managed to control his nervous outbursts of nonsense, and he stood quite still as Bofur made his move.

Slowly and carefully, Bofur leaned closer to Bilbo's face, always keeping eye contact to judge whether he was crossing any lines. As Bofur came within millimeters of his face, Bilbo's eyes flickered shut and he edged slightly forwards to close the gap between them. Bofur's lips touched his, gently at first and then with unguarded passion when he sensed Bilbo's willingness. Before he knew what he was doing, Bilbo's hands were roaming through Bofur's hair, and he was revelling in the feeling of Bofur's warm body pressed against his. He kneaded their lips together with a soft moan, and felt the tickle of Bofur's moustache on his face and the scratch of his rough beard. It felt like nothing Bilbo could ever have imagined, and a thousand times better. Bilbo clung to Bofur like a lifeline, feeling himself heat up all over as the kiss deepened and he tasted the bittersweet taste of pipeweed on Bofur's tongue.

After what felt like a life time, and yet no time at all, the two pulled apart as they paused for breath. Bilbo pulled back slightly and looked into Bofur's face, feeling flushed and excited as he never had before. Bofur looked just as happy as he felt, with his irresistible smile on his face making the corners of his eyes crinkle.

"Well, Bilbo, wasn't that a revelation..." Bofur whispered gruffly into Bilbo's ear, making him let out a silly giggle as he took in the enormity of what had just happened.

"Yes, it was, rather." Bilbo agreed with a sheepish grin.

"Come here, you!" Bofur grinned and pulled Bilbo into a tight embrace. Bilbo smiled widely to himself as he pressed againt Bofur's warm chest, breathing in the smell of earth, smoke, and something he couldn't quite distinguish which he decided to simply label as 'Bofur'. Bilbo knew that he still had an extremely important task to do, namely freeing everyone from this odious place, but at the moment he had decided to put those thoughts on hold. He had much more important things to concentrate on, and concentrate on them was exactly what he intended to do, until Bofur was brought his morning meal tomorrow and he had the chance to slip back out into the darkness. The thought of being apart from Bofur again was not desirable in any way, but he would cross that bridge when he came to it. For now, everything felt perfect and exactly as it should be, for he was in Bofur's arms and that was all he needed.

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So, I hope you enjoyed that! I am aware it ended up extremely fluffy, but that's just how I roll! Please review if you have read this story as it helps me improve my writing and gives me the motivation I need to write more often :)


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you everyone who read, favourited, followed or reviewed this story so far. Your reviews really made me want to carry on with this story, so here is the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it :)

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Bilbo Baggins stirred slightly as he awoke from the best nights sleep he had had in a long time. He registered the warm body pressed up against his back and the arm pulled firmly around his chest, and smiled softly to himself. After he had shared that perfect kiss with Bofur last night, he had felt slightly awkward but he had also felt an overwhelming sense that this was right. It was as if he hadn't realised how much he needed something like this with Bofur until he had it, and now he couldn't even contemplate losing it. Bilbo and Bofur had sat up for a long time that evening, mostly in a comfortable silence, occasionally whispering something affectionate to each other, and occasionally sharing a chaste kiss or two. They eventually laid down next to each other on the ground when tiredness began to overtake them, Bilbo feeling a little awkward until Bofur gently nudged him onto his side and pulled him close to his chest. Bilbo enjoyed the feeling of Bofur's deep rumbling snores vibrating on his back, and his soft breath tickling the back of his neck.

Now he had awoken, Bilbo yawned sleepily and turned gently over so as to not wake Bofur. He put his own arm around Bofur and cuddled up to him, trying not to think about the moment when he would have to leave the cell and hurry off to do his duty and free his friends from this prison. He still hadn't got the faintest clue about where to begin with his plan, but every day he was becoming more and more determined to do it. One good thing that Bilbo was trying to keep in mind was that every day his fellow companions were getting three meals given to them by the elves, and they were therefore building up more strength every day. They were going to need all the strength they could get for a break out from prison, and Bilbo hoped that they would all be healthy and well by the time he had formulated a plot.

All too soon, after Bofur had sleepily woken up and pressed a good morning kiss to Bilbo's cheek, they heard the approachingfootsteps of the Wood-elf bringing breakfast. With a sigh and one last look at Bofur, Bilbo slipped on the ring and slunk out of the door as the unsuspecting elf placed a bowl of mushroom soup and a small loaf of bread on the ground. Not having followed one of the elves responsible for the food before, Bilbo decided this would be as good a plan as any. He silently tiptoed behind the Wood-elf, invisible to all but himself, halting every now and then outside one of his companions' cells. Bilbo glanced in at his friends on the way and was glad to see that they looked well fed, if slightly weary and fed up with the situation.

Eventually, having fed all of the prisoners, the Wood-elf continued on his way through the kingdom. He seemed to be heading downwards all the time, into a deeper and darker part of the palace than Bilbo had seen so far. When they reached a small store room at the very bottom of the caves, Bilbo thought he could hear something like running water and he had a quick look around to see if he could locate the origin of the noise. He followed the sound through to a small chamber which appeared to be full of barrels of all shapes and sizes. Puzzled, Bilbo walked further in and at once realised what he was hearing. There was an open trap door in the floor, through which Bilbo could see a river. Immediately Bilbo realised that this river must run through the forest and join onto the Long Lake at Lake Town. Bilbo thought that there must surely be some way of using this river in his escape plan, and he decided to settle down in the store room for a while and listen to as much conversation as he could, so he could come up with a plan.

* * *

Bilbo sat nervously in the shadows, working out the last details of his plan. He had thought of almost everything, and despite it seeming a bit of a long shot, it was the only plan he had. All that remained now was to somehow distract the guard for long enough to steal his keys, but how on earth was he going to to do that? Luckily, his question was answered when the guard sat down with a friend and began drinking what soon turned out to be a very strong wine. Bilbo gathered from their conversation that a large banquet was going on in the upper part of the palace, and they had stolen a few bottles of the King's favourite wine to have to themselves while stuck on guard duty. Before long they were both passed out with their heads on the table, one of them snoring rather loudly. Bilbo thanked his lucky stars, gently detached the keys from the guard's belt, and quickly hurried off into the darkness.

As Bilbo ran down the endless corridors, he suddenly stopped dead. He had thought of something that hadn't even crossed his mind until now. The prisoners had been stripped of their weapons, and they were definitely going to need them when they got out of this place. So what was he supposed to do about this? With a sinking heart, Bilbo realised that the only way he could get past this problem would be to find out where the guards had stored them, and that would mean wasting a lot of precious time. He could only hope that the guards downstairs were going to be knocked out for an exceptionally long time, leaving enough room for error.

Bilbo thought back through his memory of all the rooms he had seen so far on his travels around the palace. He was fairly sure the weapons would be in some kind of secure room, which posed a problem of its own. However, he would have to find it first. Racking his brains, Bilbo remembered a small side-corridor that he hadn't bothered to walk down before, believing it to simply be a series of store rooms. It was as good a place to start as any, so Bilbo began to run as fast as he could towards that area of the palace.

After some frantic running, Bilbo eventually reached the passage where the prisoners were being kept, and he paused to catch his breath while waiting for the guard to walk past. Somehow, miraculously, the last store room he had looked in had contained all of the dwarves' weapons. He had carefully picked the lock, while furtively looking all around him every few seconds just in case. All he had to do now was free all the prisoners, take them to the store room to deal out their weapons, and get down to the cellar...all without being seen by a guard. As this thought entered Bilbo's mind, he almost began to feel a bit faint. However, an image suddenly went through his mind of all his fellow companions sitting in their cells, with Bofur at the forefront of course. He couldn't let them sit in prison any longer, and he had already taken the keys. The only way was forward, and he must do it with his head held high or not at all.

Trying his best not to have a panic attack, Bilbo raced to the nearest cell and unlocked the door as quietly as possible. He slipped the door open and whispered to Kili.

"Kili!" Kili looked around, shocked at the fact that his cell door was open.

"Baggins, is that you?" Bilbo suddenly remembered that he was invisible, and he slipped the ring off his finger. "Ah, there you are, Mr. hobbit. How on earth did you get those keys?"

"No time to explain now, just follow me, quietly!" Bilbo whispered and continued down the passage. Next he freed Fili, who immediately embraced his brother. Then they carried on and freed Balin, Dwalin, Ori, Nori, and Dori, trying to explain as quietly and quickly as possible what was happening. Bilbo was getting more and more agitated as they went along, because a certain thought was beginning to appear in his mind. What was the situation with Bofur going to be, now that they were all back with the rest of the company? He was terrified of showing affection to Bofur in front of everyone else in case they all shunned him. He really wished now that he'd asked Bofur what dwarves generally thought about two males being in a relationship with each other. Not to mention the fact that he wasn't even a dwarf himself, just a silly little hobbit.

Sighing, Bilbo looked up and realised they had arrived at Bofur's cell already. He felt his stomach do a back-flip and his hands shook as he pulled out the key and unlocked Bofur's cell door. Bofur walked forwards with a look of astonishment, which soon turned to his usual grin as he looked at Bilbo.

"Bilbo, you did it! Well done, my little hobbit." He smiled at Bilbo and before he knew what was happening, he had been pulled into a tight hug by the delighted dwarf. Bilbo felt his heart rate rise again, although this time he was nervous for an entirely different reason. The hug was over too quickly however, and after a slightly awkward smile at Bofur, Bilbo was leading everyone down the corridor again. Next came Bifur, Bombur, Oin, Gloin, and finally they all arrived outside Thorin's cell. By this time Bilbo was having a hard time keeping everyone quiet as they were all talking to each other and trying to find out from Bilbo exactly what his plan was. He hushed them all, then unlocked Thorin's cell and ushered him out. He walked forwards with a look of shock on his face, and clapped Bilbo on the back.

"Well, it looks like Gandalf was right about you, Baggins! You've certainly showed us your worth as a burglar, breaking us all out of jail like this. So what's the plan?" He looked expectantly at Bilbo, who's mind immediately went blank for a moment.

"Er, well, thank you Thorin Oakenshield! The plan, yes, right."

"Hurry up! Do you think we've got all day?" Someone said at the back of the company.

"Alright, give me a moment! Unless you want me to just lock you all back up and try again in a month or two?" Bilbo said crossly. He had just stolen the keys and unlocked them all himself, to be fair. There was a murmur of dissent, and everyone quietened down. "Thank you! Now, the plan at the moment is that we all head down the corridor a little way until we get to the store room where the elves have kept your weapons. It's almost been 15 minutes since the last guard came past so we're going to have to hurry! I'll tell you the rest of the plan when we get there."

Without another word, Bilbo turned and ran down the corridor, all the dwarves struggling to keep up after all this time being forced to sit in a cell. After a little while they came to the right room, and Bilbo hurriedly passed around all of the weapons, leaving it down to the dwarves to pick up the right ones. He was well aware of the shortness of time they had and was beginning to get even more panicky than before.

"Come on, come on, let's go! Down to the cellars, follow me!" Bilbo turned and ran to the end of the side-corridor, only to come face to face with a pair of extremely angry guard elves pointing spears at him. He stopped dead, heart racing and all thoughts momentarily gone from his mind. He was about to back away, when he suddenly felt a presence at his side. He turned, and with another back-flip of his stomach he saw Bofur standing next to him, an uncharacteristic look of fury on his face.

"No one points their weapon at my hobbit," he said with a glare, and Bilbo felt his face flood with colour, despite the seriousness of the situation. One of the elves pointed their spear at Bofur instead, the other still pointing at Bilbo.

"Drop your weapon at once, dwarf, or I'll run you through with my spear!" The elf shouted at Bofur, and Bilbo gulped. Bofur didn't seem phased however, and with surprising speed he brought his axe up and hit the elf on the side of the head with it so hard that the elf immediately collapsed onto the floor. The remaining elf shouted in rage and turned his weapon on Bofur, however he just wasn't quick enough and the dwarf knocked him out too within seconds. Bofur turned and grinned at Bilbo, who was standing completely still with his mouth open. Bofur leaned down and whispered in Bilbo's ear, "that's what happens when someone tries to mess with my Bilbo!"

The hobbit in question blushed again, and Bofur smiled at him with a fond look on his face. Bilbo smiled tentatively back, well aware that the whole company must be watching them. This didn't seem to matter to Bofur however who took a step forwards and placed a gentle kiss on Bilbo's lips. Bilbo dipped his head and looked at the floor, then slowly he turned and looked back down the corridor. Everyone was standing looking at them, mouths open in shock. Someone dropped their axe on the floor, and it seemed to bring everyone to their senses.

"Come on everyone, the hobbit said to go the cellars!" Thorin shouted, running past Bilbo and Bofur. Everyone else followed him at once, all giving Bilbo a strange look as they ran past. With a sigh, Bilbo started forwards. He knew it was worth enduring all the jibes he was likely to get, so he could be with Bofur, but that didn't seem to be making it any easier at the moment. Feeling as if he now had a lead weight in his feet, Bilbo continued after the company. The only thing he could do now was hope with all his heart that his friends would find it in their hearts to accept him. He turned to look at Bofur, who gave him a sad smile. It was certainly going to be much harder than he had expected to complete this break out.

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So, I hope you liked this chapter! Please please leave me a review if you can, even if you just want to tell me something I can improve on :) x


	4. Chapter 4

Here's the next chapter everyone! I hope you've been enjoying the story, and I've tried to take on board everything that you've suggested in the reviews :) Enjoy!

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Bilbo stood in the cellar of the kingdom of the Wood-elves. The entire company of dwarves was gathered around him, all looking at him expectantly. Bilbo felt extremely intimidated at the moment, despite the strong bonds he believed he had with his companions. They may not have said anything to him directly yet about the incident upstairs, but he could tell none of them was remotely okay with the recent developments between himself and Bofur. Thorin looked particularly angry and distrustful, and was eying Bilbo up as if he was some kind of foul orc. It seemed Bofur was getting his fair share of distrust from the company too, as none of them seemed too keen on standing next to him. Bilbo took a deep breath and nervously began to talk.

"Okay everyone, here is the plan. These barrels are all empty, and will be thrown into the river to be floated along to the Long Lake, just outside Lake Town. Now I know it's not the best plan in the world, but if each dwarf is packed into one of these large barrels, then we can all be shipped straight out of the palace without any elves knowing a single thing. Any questions?"

By this stage, all of the dwarves were looking taken aback and angry at what Bilbo was suggesting.

"Are you mad, hobbit? We'll all be drowned!" Bombur shouted angrily.

"Or else bashed to pieces!" Dwalin put in. Bilbo's heart sank like a stone. He knew when he had come up with the plan that it would take some convincing to get the dwarves to go along with it, but he hadn't reckoned on all of them already being angry towards him before he'd even started. With another sigh, Bilbo tried again.

"Look, I understand that it wont be comfortable, or easy, or simple to get out of the palace in this way. But it's the only plan we've got! What does everyone else suggest then, if not this?"

Bilbo waited, but despite much muttering under their breath, none of the dwarves said anything. That is, until Bofur stepped boldly forwards.

"Listen, everyone. I think it's a great plan. If we hurry and get into the barrels before any of the elves have a chance to see us, then they won't be any the wiser! Right?" Bofur looked hopefully at the rest of the company but they weren't going to be convinced that easily.

"Of course _he's _going to stand up for the hobbit," someone grumbled under their breath. Bofur looked crestfallen, and Bilbo decided he had had enough.

"Alright everyone, I think we need to talk. I know perfectly well that none of you seem to be comfortable with the - situation - between me and Bofur. However, despite what your views might be of me and my kind, I can't believe that you would treat your own kin like this. Bofur is guilty of no crime, in my eyes. Maybe you find it strange that we have found comfort in each other despite our differences in race, and being of the same gender, but I never would have believed that a group as close as this one would shun their friend for what seems to me to be pretty inconsequential."

Bilbo had been eying all of the dwarves defensively as he made this little speech, and he was pleased to see that they all seemed to be shuffling their feet and looking sheepishly at the ground. He turned to Bofur, and saw with a rush of affection that his usual beautiful smile had returned to his face. Before anyone had a chance to say anything, Bilbo suddenly remembered where they were, and he hurriedly started ordering the dwarves to find a decent sized barrel to climb into. They grumbled a bit again, but reluctantly began doing as they were told. Bilbo busied himself with helping the dwarves into the barrels, and filling as much empty space as he could with some straw that was lying around, in the hope of stopping the worst of the bruises they were likely to get.

Bilbo wandered over to help a reluctant looking Thorin climb into his barrel. When Thorin saw him, he stopped dead, and gave Bilbo an almost embarrassed look.

"Mr Baggins, I must...apologise...for the attitude of myself and my companions. I may not entirely understand why you or Bofur has made this decision, but you were correct in saying that we should not abandon one of our own kin. And it seems that as long as you and Bofur are...well...the point is, we must accept you into our group as if you were our kin too." Thorin looked extremely uncomfortable saying this, although Bilbo had a sense that it was well meant. Thorin was just the type of person who never admitted he was wrong about anything, which made Bilbo feel a lot happier about the situation. He smiled tentatively at the dwarf.

"Thank you, Thorin. I understand that it was difficult for you to say that." Thorin grunted noncommittally, but Bilbo saw the smallest hint of a smile on his face. Bilbo proceeded to help Thorin into his barrel without saying another word, feeling much happier than he had done a little while ago. He worked his way around the other dwarves, making sure they were securely packed into a barrel each. Most of them looked pretty abashed, and Bilbo figured they were beginning to regret the animosity they had shown to Bofur and himself. He responded by smiling kindly at everyone, and when Kili looked as if he was about to say something, Bilbo hushed him.

"No, you don't have to say anything, Kili," Bilbo said gently.

"But Bilbo, I'm -"

"Don't want to hear it! Everything is fine, Kili, don't worry. I don't need to hear apologies from anyone, when it is already forgiven. Now get into your barrel, go on!" Bilbo ushered him into the barrel, and Kili climbed in grudgingly. Bilbo was just about to walk away when he heard a small mutter come from inside Kili's barrel.

"I'm sorry, Boggins." This was followed by a small giggle, and Bilbo sighed, holding back laughter. He muttered under his breath about stubborn dwarves as he walked over to the last remaining dwarf who wasn't in a barrel.

Bofur was standing patiently by his barrel, waiting for Bilbo with an affectionate smile on his face. As Bilbo drew nearer, Bofur's grin widened and he pulled Bilbo into a tight hug.

"Thank you, Bilbo. You have no idea how much that meant to me," Bofur whispered in Bilbo's ear, "to see all of my friends welcome me back, no matter what decisions I've made."

"You're most welcome, Bofur," Bilbo smiled back at him. "You know, Thorin actually just apologised to me! An actual real apology!" Bofur looked incredulously back at him.

"You're joking aren't you?" He looked astounded.

"Nope! No word of a lie. He said that as long as we were together, he would accept me as one of his kin too." They looked seriously at each other, both realising the importance of what this decision would do to their lives. They had both silently accepted that they were in this for life, not just for a passing phase during the quest, and something had changed between them. Bilbo knew that he would never look back, something inside him felt that this was entirely the right thing to do. He shared a long, meaningful look with Bofur who had an unusually serious but incredibly happy expression on his face. Their happy moment was broken, however, by a muffled shout that came from a nearby barrel.

"Oi, lads! We haven't got all day, you know!" Bilbo recognised Kili's voice at once, and the giggling from the barrel next to him could only have been Fili's. With one last wistful look at Bofur, he helped him into a barrel and packed him in as tightly as possible with straw. It was at this moment, however, when Bilbo suddenly realised the flaw in his plan. He had no one to pack him into a barrel! He silently cursed his stupidity, panicking when he heard approaching voices. The only thing he could think to do was to quickly jam the ring onto his finger and wait at the side of the room, hoping some kind of opportunity would arise when the other barrels were thrown into the river.

As Bilbo waited nervously, two elven guards entered the room and began carrying the barrels towards the trap door that opened into the river. They began throwing them down, starting with some of the smaller ones that Bilbo had left empty. However, inevitably they eventually reached a big barrel full of dwarf. The elf picking up the barrel put it down at once, alerting his friend to the fact that it clearly wasn't empty.

"Never mind about that! I checked all these barrels myself, and we don't have much time. Just throw them all in, alright?" The elf reluctantly complied, although he shot an angry look at his superior every time he picked up one of the heavy barrels. Before long, there were only a couple of barrels left and Bilbo was starting to panic. What was he going to do? He couldn't possibly be separated from everyone. Finally, as the elf threw the last barrel into the river, Bilbo decided to just jump in himself and hang onto the nearest barrel for dear life. He jumped, and was shocked by the sudden cold of the water surrounding him. Shivering violently, he eventually managed to control his movements and he grabbed onto the barrel closest to him. It was just enough to keep him afloat, and he drifted down the river feeling thoroughly miserable, wondering how long exactly he would have to endure this for.

* * *

Several hours had passed, and Bilbo was laying in a bedraggled heap on the bank of the river. He shivered uncontrollably, trying to collect himself before checking the coast was clear and finding his friends. After a little while he felt like he could stand, and he staggered back to the riverbank to drag out the barrels and count them. It took a lot of effort, but eventually Bilbo had collected thirteen heavy barrels and set them upright on the ground. It had fallen dark by now and the men from the nearby town had retired inside for a hot meal and some ale, so there was no danger of them being seen. Carefully, Bilbo set about the task of freeing the dwarves from their uncomfortable vessels.

Out of the first barrel Bilbo opened came a very sore and wet Thorin. He seemed to be in a terrible mood, but otherwise able to stand after a little bit of time laying down. He then helped Bilbo opened the rest of the barrels, grumbling as he went, pulling out the miserable dwarves from inside and laying them gently on the ground. Half of them seemed to be extremely bashed and bruised, and hardly alive, and Bilbo began fretting that Bofur would be in such a state. Eventually, in the second to last barrel, Bilbo pulled out a thoroughly soaked and half-conscious Bofur. With his heart pounding in fear and anxiety, Bilbo laid Bofur on the ground knelt by his side. The other, slightly less beaten dwarves hastily busied themselves with tending to the others, tactfully leaving the two of them in peace.

"Bofur!" Bilbo whispered, gently shaking him to see if he was awake. With a groan, he began to stir.

"Bilbo? Is that you?" He rasped quietly, opening his eyes slowly as if just waking up from a deep sleep.

"Yes, it's me, Bofur," Bilbo soothed, leaning down hesitantly and kissing him on the cheek. Bofur smiled and leaned forwards as if to hug Bilbo, but he immediately laid back down on the ground, wincing in pain.

"No, no, don't try to move! Just lay still while I check your injuries. Where does it hurt the most?" Bilbo asked quickly, peeling back layers of clothes so he could get a look at the bruised skin of his dwarf.

"Everywhere," Bofur said with a wry smile, "but I don't think I've broken any bones. I just feel extremely bashed and bruised, and in need of a huge tankard of ale."

"Well, let's hope we can arrange that soon!" Bilbo grinned at him, and began trying to dry Bofur off and warm him up a bit with a blanket from his pack that had somehow stayed mostly dry on his journey. He watched Bofur's face as he gently rubbed his body dry, noticing some colour slowly appearing in his face and the familiar glint in his eye coming back. After a while Bilbo leaned down and softly kissed Bofur on the lips, lingering for a while before pulling back and smiling at him. "Do you feel like you could stand yet?" Bilbo asked softly.

"Aye, I can only try!" he said, wincing slightly as he moved but managing to stagger up into a standing position. He stretched his arms and legs out a bit, and winked at Bilbo. "Good as new! Let's go see how the others are doing, shall we?" So they walked off towards everyone else, Bilbo noticing with a sigh of relief that almost everyone was sitting up and looking much better than before. Bombur was still laying down on the ground, but he was complaining loudly to everyone in the vicinity about his various ailments so Bilbo supposed he couldn't be feeling as bad as he claimed to.

After a little recuperation, Thorin decided they should walk down to Lake Town and find the Master of the Town. He took with him Fili, Kili and Bilbo, the latter of which was very reluctant to leave Bofur's side. However, Thorin looked very determined and Bilbo had no desire to anger him, so away he went. Presently they came to a group of guards, who immediately jumped up and asked who they were.

"I am Thorin son of Thrain son of Thror, King Under the Mountain, and I have returned!" Thorin said loudly and majestically to them, Bilbo rolling his eyes in the background at the grandeur of Thorin's entrance. The guards looked shocked, but complied in taking Thorin to the Master when he asked them. Bilbo listened while Thorin introduced himself and the others to the Master of the Town, and explained that they had returned to fulfill their quest to the Lonely Mountain, like the songs of old predicted. Everyone in the town was shocked at their arrival, and most seemed sceptical that Thorin was a long lost king returning to fight a dragon. However they seemed hospitable enough, and the Master invited them all to join his feast. Before long the other dwarves had been invited down too, and they all enjoyed a well deserved meal together while listening to the townsfolk singing ancient songs about dwarven kings and dragon slaying.

Bilbo, it seemed, was the only person seeming thoroughly miserable. They had come so close to the Lonely Mountain and that was what the next leg of their journey was certainly going to lead to. He had no idea how they were going to manage to steal back their treasure and their old kingdom from a live, fiery dragon, and he was dreading the moment when they would move on towards what seemed to Bilbo to be imminent death. He sat at the feast, looking away from everyone and thinking depressing thoughts to himself, as Bofur watched him with a concerned expression on his face. What was his Bilbo thinking about that was making him look so sad?

* * *

Ok I hope you enjoyed that chapter! Please let me know if you think I can improve on anything, and I'll try my best :) thank you!


	5. Chapter 5

Hello everyone! Here is the next chapter :) enjoy!

* * *

Bilbo Baggins was sitting at the table, almost alone. It had escaped his notice, but nearly everyone else had left already and been escorted to their temporary house in Laketown. The only other person left was Bofur, who was walking towards Bilbo with a worried expression on his face. Gently, he dropped into the chair next to Bilbo and leaned in close to him.

"Hey, what's troubling ye, my little hobbit?" Bofur whispered to a morose Bilbo. He turned to Bofur, and gave him a weak smile.

"Oh, not much. Just the threat of a giant 'furnace with wings' at the end of our journey, nothing serious!" Bilbo giggled shrilly, and then his face dropped and he looked even sadder than he had to start with. This greatly concerned Bofur, and he softly put his hand on Bilbo's face, turning him to look into his eyes. With a wrench of his heart, Bofur saw a single tear roll down Bilbo's face, and he wiped it away with one rough thumb. Softly, he kissed Bilbo on the lips then drew back to look at him again. Bilbo smiled at him a little wider than he had before, and Bofur leaned in to kiss him, again and again, until he drew back and Bilbo's smile was reflected in his eyes too.

"Bilbo, ye knew what we were gonna be facing when we set out on this quest. You've come this far, through everything we've faced, and shown your worth to the entire Company. We all respect you, and we all know you have it in you to complete the journey in one piece. I believe in you, Bilbo," he finished simply, with a lopsided grin on his face. He looked so sincere that Bilbo couldn't help but feel at least a little uplifted. Yes, he had managed to get here despite trolls, giants, orcs, Gollum and giant spiders trying to stop him, and he had found some kind of inner bravery that he never knew he had. Perhaps the company would be lucky and they would all make it. In a year's time they might be sitting and feasting like they had today, only celebrating the defeat of Smaug and the retaking of Erebor, something they could turn into songs and legends for their children to learn. With a much lighter heart than before, Bilbo smiled a genuine smile at Bofur.

"Thank you, Bofur. You know just what to say to cheer me up!" Bilbo pulled Bofur into a tight hug, and they stayed in that position for a little while. Eventually, they realised how late it was getting and they pulled apart. An errant thought flitted through Bilbo's mind of where he was going to be sleeping tonight, and in his mind there was a warm, bearded figure sleeping next to him in his bed. This thought sent a shock wave of butterflies through his stomach and he blushed slightly. He wanted nothing more than to settle down next to Bofur and sleepy soundly by his side, but would Bofur think he was being hasty?

As Bilbo thought about this tricky situation, they wandered out of the feasting hall and were ushered by a guard to the house they would be staying in with the rest of the company. The guard showed them to the floor with all of the bedrooms on it, and pointed out which ones were Bofur's and Bilbo's, before disappearing into the darkness. Bilbo stood awkwardly for a moment, wondering if he should bring up the subject or just slink back to his room. However, in the end he didn't need to choose.

"Would you like to come in, Bilbo?" Bofur asked him with an almost hopeful expression on his face.

"Er, yes, I'd love to!" Bilbo replied eagerly. They both slipped through the door into Bofur's room, and Bilbo looked around in wonder. There was a large, soft bed on one side of the room which looked like the most comfortable thing Bilbo had seen since the beginning of the quest. The room was stylishly decorated, but Bilbo wouldn't have cared if it was a filthy hovel, as long as it had a warm comfy bed in it.

As Bilbo was looking around the room, Bofur had moved to sit on the bed, and he was now beginning to peel off the many layers of clothing he had on. Bilbo felt his face go a little pink, but he nevertheless began shyly taking off his own clothes too. When they were both in their undergarments, Bofur pulled back the blankets and gestured for Bilbo to get in. He smiled at Bofur and climbed into bed, immediately letting out a sigh as he sank into the feather soft mattress. It was the first proper bed he had laid in since they had left Rivendell, and it felt truly wonderful.

Revelling in the feeling of the bed, Bilbo turned and watched Bofur climb in next to him. He scooted over closer to Bilbo, who felt pleasant warmth coming from the dwarf. Bofur turned to him and gave him a smile, his eyes full of such powerful emotion that it almost moved Bilbo to tears. He smiled back at Bofur, who leaned in and closed the gap between them. He pressed a tender kiss to Bilbo's lips, and very lightly rubbed his nose on Bilbo's. Then he blew out the candle, and drew closer to Bilbo again. He gently rolled him onto his side, and pulled him close so that Bilbo's back was pressed against his chest. He threw a muscled arm around Bilbo's chest and held him close, Bilbo feeling supreme warmth encompass him, both physically and emotionally. Lying next to Bofur like this made him feel as if he was home, for the first time since he had left Bag End. He closed one hand over Bofur's, stroking it gently with his thumb. He could feel Bofur's warmth breath on the back of his neck, and it filled him with an overwhelming feeling of peace.

* * *

Bilbo lay in bed, beginning to wake up. He felt warm, cozy, and completely at peace, and he smiled to himself slightly as he thought about his plans for the day. Maybe he would walk down by the Brandywine river and have a picnic. Or perhaps he could go and visit his Took relatives. As he was thinking about this, a warm arm tightened around him a little and he suddenly realised exactly where he was. He felt a rush of affection run through him and he turned carefully over to face Bofur, throwing his own arm around the deliciously warm dwarf next to him and cuddling close. He opened his eyes and looked at Bofur, who in turn looked sleepily back at him.

"Morning, my little hobbit. You slept well?" he said in a slightly rough voice.

"Of course I did, Bofur," Bilbo replied with a smile, "I can safely say that was the best night's sleep I've ever had." He leaned closer and kissed Bofur on the lips, feeling so completely comfortable in this situation that he didn't even blush. Bofur responded with enthusiasm, and they lost track of how much time they spent laying there in bed, kissing each other passionately. Eventually, they pulled apart when Bilbo's stomach started growling loudly and they decided it was high time for some breakfast.

They headed down to the feasting hall together, Bofur with his arm slung casually around Bilbo's waist. The rest of the company was down there already, most of them having finished eating. Bombur however was still going with much enthusiasm, and the couple dropped down into seats next to him, Bofur sitting next to his brother. Fili and Kili were sitting opposite Bilbo, and they looked interestedly at the two of them.

"Hey Bilbo, you look great today!" Kili said, giving Bilbo a wink. Bilbo coughed awkwardly, and Bofur threw a menacing look across the table. "No, no, I wasn't...I didn't mean..." Kili panicked at the sight of Bofur's face. Fili stepped in to the rescue.

"He just meant, you look extremely happy this morning Bilbo!" Fili said quickly, and Kili hastily joined in.

"Yeah, you're practically glowing!" Kili said, flicking a sheepish glance at Bofur. "Bofur must make you very happy indeed." Bilbo smiled happily at this, and turned to Bofur who looked back at him with a wry smile.

"Oh, he does," Bilbo replied with a grin on his face, "I didn't know it was possible to be this happy until now..." He trailed off, pretending to ignore Fili and Kili's shouts of "CHEESE!"

Bilbo turned to look aimlessly at everyone else at the table. Balin and Dwalin were having an in-depth conversation at the end of the table while Ori listened with a rapt expression; Dori and Oin were laughing raucously about something; Bifur was sitting happily by himself while stuffing a mountain of fried eggs into his mouth; Nori and Gloin were singing a song together in a corner about ancient times in Erebor. The only person at the table who didn't appear to be in good spirits was Thorin, who was sitting alone at the other end of the table, silently brooding. Bilbo wondered for a moment about what was troubling him, but he was soon distracted by the lively conversation of Fili and Kili, and he missed the dark look that Thorin was throwing his way.

* * *

Time seemed to go so fast here, while the days were full of hope and happiness, and light-hearted fun. All of the dwarves had become extremely comfortable in their new home, and seemed to be thinking less and less of the journey ahead. Why should they think of the danger in front of them when they were safe and happy right here in Laketown? Bilbo and Bofur were especially happy, and Bilbo liked nothing better than falling asleep in Bofur's arms each night and waking up next to him in the morning.

They spent their days enjoying bonding with the rest of the company as much as possible, occasionally enjoying time alone in their room. Bilbo had found a bit of a soft spot for young Ori, and he frequently tried to compliment the dwarf on his skilful pencil drawings that he enjoyed making. It brought a proud smile to his face whenever Bilbo said he liked something he had drawn, and he had a skip in step for the rest of the day. Bilbo had also become closer to Bombur, seeing as he was Bofur's brother. Bilbo quite often found himself in a heated debate over the best way to cook potatoes, or else having a friendly reminisce about the many meals he used to eat in the Shire. Bombur seemed particularly impressed with that custom of hobbits.

However, despite the high spirits of everyone else, Bilbo had noticed more and more that Thorin was always in a foul mood. He of course put this down to the journey ahead, to start with, for it seemed a perfectly good reason to be bad tempered. Thorin was, after all, the leader of the company and it would be his job to make everyone leave this comfort and march up to the door of the dragon. Nevertheless, Bilbo had noticed uncomfortably that Thorin's dark mood seemed to coincide with him showing affection to Bofur in front of him. Why would Thorin be so angry about the two of them being together, when he had personally apologised and accepted them in the palace of the Wood-elves? Bilbo was beginning to doubt the sincerity of that particular apology.

It seemed like too simple a thing to bring up with Bofur; after all he had no proof, so for now Bilbo tried to ignore it. Time passed, and they had been in Laketown for nearly two weeks, when Bilbo finally got frustrated enough at Thorin to tell Bofur about his fears. It seemed that every time the two of them walked into a room, Thorin's face would set into an angry frown. He was constantly snapping at people, and seemed to be completely ignoring Bilbo and Bofur altogether. It was at dinner on the thirteenth day that Bilbo decided enough was enough. All he had done was to place his hand over Bofur's on the table, and he had distinctly heard Thorin let out a low growl of anger under his breath. Bilbo met his eyes in a steely gaze, and he could see anger and resentment building in Thorin's face.

As soon as he finished his dinner, Thorin stormed from the room and Bilbo watched him leave in exasperation. He felt that Bofur couldn't possibly have missed his leader's behaviour, and he decided to bring it up.

"Bofur, have you noticed how Thorin has been acting recently?" He said to Bofur with a bemused expression.

"Aye, he's been a bit...out of sorts," Bofur replied.

"Out of sorts? He's been downright rude!"

"Well, yes, I suppose he has," Bofur said sadly.

"I thought he'd accepted us, he even apologised before for his behaviour. If everyone else can accept it then why can't he?" Bilbo said in annoyance. "It's not like we're all over each other in front of everyone."

Bofur seemed to think about it for a while, and then he looked slightly worried. "Ye don't suppose...I mean, would it be possible..." Bofur looked troubled.

"What is it, Bofur?" Bilbo prompted interestedly.

"What if Thorin is jealous?" Bofur blurted out. Bilbo looked at him with shock on his face.

"Jealous? But he's never shown any interest in you before, Bofur."

"Not jealous of you, Bilbo! Jealous of me. What if he's angry that I'm the one that won your heart, and not him?" Bilbo sat there, disbelieving. Could that really be true? It felt incredible to him that Bofur had fallen for him, let alone the cold hearted Thorin. However, it would certainly give a good explanation to the behaviour of the king. With a troubled mind, Bilbo decided the best thing to do would be to confront Thorin about it. After all, what was the worst that the king could do? They still needed Bilbo on this quest, and Bilbo was certain that if Thorin tried to get rid of him, most if not all of the other dwarves would stand up for him. After all, they had all become much closer over the last few days. All, that is, apart from Thorin.

Later that day, while everyone was preoccupied with a drunken singing competition, Bilbo decided it was time to confront Thorin about the way he had been acting. He wasn't even with the rest of the company, so Bilbo slipped away up the stairs and knocked on Thorin's bedroom door.

"Enter!" Thorin's harsh reply came from within. Bilbo nervously opened the door, beginning to wonder what on earth he had been thinking of. These feelings doubled when he saw the thunderous look on Thorin's face at the sight of the hobbit. He bravely stepped forwards and faced the king.

"Well?" Thorin demanded. "To what do I owe this...pleasure?" He almost spat the last word out.

"Look, Thorin, we need to talk. We both know you've been angry and inconsiderate to me and Bofur since we arrived here at Laketown. However, I would like to know why. I thought you apologised and accepted us?" Bilbo looked defiantly at the dwarf, who stood up and towered over Bilbo. The hobbit gulped, but he didn't move away.

"Whatever you are talking about, Halfling, you are incorrect. I am merely troubled with the thoughts of the quest." He avoided Bilbo's eye, instead looking resolutely at a point about a foot above his head.

"What a load of rubbish!" Bilbo said infuriately. "You've not said a single thing to me since we came here, and you look at me with such malice in your face that I sometimes believe you're plotting my death! There must be a reason for it," he finished, breathing heavily. Thorin looked him in the eye this time, and Bilbo could see an intensity there that scared him.

"A reason, you say, for my anger? If you do not see it, Halfling, then I don't believe I can help you."

"Why not? We're going to be on the rest of this quest together, unless you really are planning on getting rid of me. It would be a lot simpler if you would just tell me," he desperately tried to reason. Thorin turned away and looked out the window. He stood silently for a while, and then turned to look at Bilbo again. Bilbo was shocked to see what looked like tears in the eyes of the king.

"You just don't get it, do you, hobbit? You were so busy going doe-eyed over that half-wit dwarf of yours that you never even noticed the attention I was giving you. And now you throw it in my face at every opportunity you get, and you expect me to just take it, as if I feel nothing? I wish I felt nothing, but I don't. I feel hurt, and anguish, and despite all of that I still feel the same things for you as I always did." Thorin was red in the face, although Bilbo knew it was from anger, not embarrassment. "Get out of my sight, hobbit. I don't want to see you again, do you hear me? Get out!" He walked towards Bilbo with a terrifying fire in his eyes, and Bilbo turned and fled.

He was half-way down the stairs when he bumped into Bofur, who had apparently come looking for him.

"Hey, hey, Bilbo! What's wrong?" Bofur looked worriedly into his face.

"I was just speaking to Thorin," Bilbo said dejectedly. "You were right, Bofur. He has feelings for me, and he is incredibly angry. He said he never wanted to see me again! But surely he won't throw me out of the company?" Bilbo looked anxiously at Bofur, who paused for a moment and then pulled him into a hug.

"Don't worry about it, Bilbo. If he tries anything we'll all stick up for you. What he needs is time, time to think about everything, time to get over you. He'll come round eventually," Bofur said comfortingly, but neither of them was entirely convinced. It was with a heavy heart that Bilbo went to sleep that night, despite Bofur's comforting form next to him in the bed. The next morning, Thorin ordered everyone to pack their belongings and prepare for the final leg of their journey to Erebor.

* * *

There you go, everyone! I hope you liked that chapter, it was much more dramatic than the last one. Thank you to Gary Oak The Pidgeon for the idea of a jealous Thorin, and thank you to everyone else that has reviewed, favourited or followed the story. You make me so happy! :)


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